24 Hours of Le Mans – Sunday Morning: No.1 Porsche held on to victory after Toyota’s nightmare night
Here are the highlights of a night in Manche that lived up to its reputation. Here's an update after twenty hours of racing, less than four hours before the chequered flag.
Sensitive souls, abstain. If you are discovering the main highlights of the second part of these 24 Hours of Le Mans, sit down. The Toyota team has lost all chance of winning the event! The night has indeed been fatal to the ambitions of the Japanese team.
It all started with the Toyota No. 8, which had been the underdog in the race for victory. Sébastien Buemi had been worried for a long time about the condition of his car. Suffering from brake overheating, the front right tire on fire, the Formula E championship leader still managed to get back to the garage. But repairs pushed the crew deep down the standings. By 10 a.m. this morning, No. 8 had only made it into the top 15 of the overall standings.
Then, everything happened in quick succession. The number 7 was dominating the race. Kamui Kobayashi had just gotten into the car for a stint in the heart of the night, around 0:40 AM. That’s when the TS050 Hybrid refused to accelerate, stuck in first gear! The race had been slowed down for long minutes due to a Ford GT spin-out that scattered gravel on the track. To make matters worse, the problem appeared right at the beginning of the lap! The former Sauber/Caterham F1 driver was forced to complete the circuit at 65 km/h. After an initial stop on the track, the second proved fatal, marking the retirement of the great favorite for victory!
The icing on the poisoned cake finally intervened with car no. 9, Nicolas Lapierre at the wheel. A contact with a Manor Oreca at the Dunlop chicane sent the car wide into the gravel, resulting in a puncture. When it returned to the track a few seconds later, the rear of the car was consequently damaged. But the mechanics didn’t even have the chance to repair it. Already struggling with fuel consumption issues, the car also stopped on the track, marking a second retirement out of three crews. After the dagger blow of the last lap in 2016, the night thus took care of destroying the hopes of an entire team.
Consequently, two LMP1s could contend for the victory, especially car No. 1 of the trio Neel Jani – André Lotterer – Nick Tandy. Car No. 2 had experienced a relatively calm night, marked by a climb up the rankings. Here it is with the podium in sight, at a minimum.
At least one LMP2 on the final podium!
It is therefore no longer an LMP1 but indeed an LMP2 that occupied the second position across all categories. Twelve laps behind the number 1, the battle was intense, even though one car is starting to pull away from the pack.
Youth is carefree, even in this unique ordeal. At 19 years old, Thomas Laurent helped widen the gap aboard the No. 38 Oreca of DC Racing-run Jackie Chan. Second place was well on its way after the No. 13 Rebellion Oreca had to make a pit stop. On board, David Heinemeier Hansson (and Nelson Piquet Jr) remained in third overall, two and a half minutes behind. The podium is within reach, but the comeback of a German cannonball must be considered! Shortly before 11 a.m., the No. 2 Porsche just entered the top 5. Less success, however, for the No. 31 Vaillante, stuck in the garage for an hour and a half. The Prost-Senna-Canal trio can no longer aim for a result, now pushed back to 26th place.
On the GTE Pro side, total suspense! The Aston Martin No. 97 (driven by Darren Turner) leads by only a few seconds over a Corvette, the No. 63 (driven by Jan Magnussen), and a Porsche, the No. 91. Five teams are still in the running for victory. Sam Bird is also waiting in the wings in the Ferrari No. 71, as is a Ford, the No. 67, notably driven by Andy Priaulx. After a crash the day before, there is nice consolation for Ferrari in GTE Am, with the No. 64 at the top.
The end of the race is in sight for all the crews still in contention, in a real furnace. The ambient temperature is currently reaching 33 degrees in Sarthe. Only ten retirements are to be regretted, even though three have affected the two leading teams of these 24 Hours of Le Mans.
BREAKING NEWS: The leader hit in turn, an LMP2 will compete for the win!
A new dramatic twist at 3:45 am before the finish! The Porsche No. 1 got stuck at 30 km/h on the side of the track before stopping. The issue occurred even before the Mulsanne Straight. With a 13-lap lead, the aim was to get back to the pits and repair in time. Unfortunately, André Lotterer gave up and got out of his car, permanently. An oil pressure problem is the cause of this withdrawal, once again reshuffling the top standings.
DRAMA!
Leading car #1 @Porsche_Team slow down at Tête Rouge.🙈#LeMans24 #WEC pic.twitter.com/KawhR32H8u— FIA WEC (@FIAWEC) June 18, 2017
We have to pinch ourselves to believe it: the LMP2 Oreca No. 38, fitted with Dunlop tires (unlike Michelin in LMP1), could win the 24 Hours of Le Mans! Unless the Porsche No. 2 succeeds in the crazy bet of making a comeback, an option that is also highly conceivable given its pace (between eight and ten seconds faster per lap) and the gap, which was two laps at noon. We are therefore going to witness a finish worthy of the fable of the tortoise and the hare. Astonishing!
What a ruthless moment!
Car door is open, @Andre_Lotterer got out of the #1 @Porsche_Team. #LeMans24 #WEC pic.twitter.com/oD1sgPlZlg— FIA WEC (@FIAWEC) 18 juin 2017
